An Unexpected Match
by Diligo Decorus
Summary: In her 5th year, Ginny becomes close with Draco during a school project that they work on together. After learning a secret about Draco, Ginny must choose where her loyalties lay, who she loves, and at what lengths she will go to do what is right.
1. Charms Project

Ginny was sitting in the Gryffindor common room when a giggling sixth year popped her head in. she had looked at Ginny, muttered something about traitor, and man stealer, and then stomped her way up to the dormitories. Ginny wondered what she was talking about, but Harry entered the room and distracter her thoughts.

"Are you ok Ginny?" he asked, and sat down on the couch next to her.

"Uh, yeah…"she said in a confused voice. "Why do you ask? Did something happen?" Harry turned to face her completely and said,

"So you haven't heard. Hermione thought you wouldn't have, but Ron was sure you would." Ginny was starting to get angry. Obviously Harry didn't want to be the one to tell her the news. She guessed it was something social, and probably had to do with a boy. _Oh great_! _Just what I need right now! More complications!_

Ginny gave Harry the puppy dog face, and eventually, Harry gave in, took a huge gulp of air, and said in one breath,

"Draco fell asleep in Potions class, and pronounced his undeniable love for you in front of the whole class, and Snape confirmed that it was true, and about the whole school knows, and Draco is really embarrassed, and has been avoiding you!" Harry finished and gasped for air. The pair looked like they were about to pass out, Ginny from shock, Harry from lack of oxygen.

"Brilliant!" Ginny muttered sarcastically as she turned to face the portrait hole. Practically everyone coming in from the corridors gave Ginny a dirty glare, like Malfoy liking her was her fault, or a giggle, halfway "I'm so sorry, but it's funny", and halfway, "Ha ha, sucker!!!" Ginny couldn't distinguish the two, and she didn't want to either.

Harry was about to leave Ginny, who looked as pale as in the Chamber of Secrets, and who hadn't spoken a word yet since he broke the news, when Hermione skidded out of the door, and stood on the platform before the stairs.

She caught Harry's eye, and since Ginny had her back turned to her, mouthed the words, "did you tell her?" very slowly to Harry, so Harry could understand her. Harry nodded solemnly, and discretely put his thumb pointed downwards. Harry vigorously nodded, and Hermione carefully took the steps down towards the common room, books under her arm, just in case she had a little time to study, in between consoling Ginny.

Ginny, who had been oblivious to their whole conversation, not that she really cared either though, heard someone coming down the stairs, and was relieved to see it was Hermione. The last person in the world she wanted to see was her brother Ron, who would only make fun of her, and probably lock her in a closet so Draco wouldn't be able to see her. Harry promptly got up, knowing that it would be a "girl talk", and that he would not want to be present. He ran up the stairs, and bumped face to face with Ron. Ron made a start down the stairs, but Harry quickly pulled him back with one swift jerk on the shoulder.

"Not now Ron", he said, and whispered "can't you see their having a girl talk?" Ron looked over, and sure enough, Hermione and Ginny were whispering to each other, giggling once in a while. Glad that he didn't go over, Ron decided to settle the problem his way, another time.

Ginny was aroused from her sleep by Hermione, already dressed for the night.

"Come on Ginny. You'd better get to bed now. I imagine you'll have a long day with…well … you know." Ginny stumbled off of the couch, and made her way to the dormitories. She had had enough of thinking, and preferred a dreamless sleep this particular night.

Ginny was awoken in the morning by a small brown item being shoved forcefully into her mouth. Ginny opened her eves as the chocolate melted in her mouth. Anyone who knew Ginny knew that on days like this, she would not get out of bed without a piece of chocolate being shoved in her mouth. Ginny took the shower as soon as it was open, and then did her hair and makeup. As Ginny put on her robes she thought about what the day would be like. Guessing that she probably would be the victim of a lot of Gossip, she wanted to look her best.

She stepped out of the bathroom, and decided she was ready to face the Great Hall. Ginny had already explained to her roommates about the situation, and informed them that she had nothing to do with Draco.

"I don't bloody like him, so you might as well just keep your mouths shut!" she exclaimed when one of the girls brought it up.

_Well, I guess I'll have to go down sometime, unless I want to pass out_. She made her way down the corridors, and tried to avoid any eye contact with the people around her. As she neared the Great Hall, she could tell that the faces on her fellow Gryffindors, and their arch enemy's the Slytherins, would not be a pretty one. Ginny took a deep breath and commander her body to move into the Great Hall. Ginny stared into the Great Hall, mortified at the sight before her. As far as Ginny could tell, every eye I the Great Hall was looking at her. Pulling herself together, she made her way towards the Gryffindor table.

Ginny found an open spot next to her friends, and sat down. She could tell everyone knew about what Draco had said, they just weren't leading on. Ginny filled her plate, and ate as quickly as she could, without looking like a pig. Hermione was sitting across the table and to her left attempted to catch Ginny's eye. Once she looked over, Hermione winked, and gave Ginny a thumbs up sign. Ginny sighed and returned the signal. She had honestly hopped that Hermione had forgotten about the plan. Ginny quickly tried to remember the steps they had laid out the other night.

Avoid Draco at all costs, even if that means taking the long route to classes, and even purposely getting detention.

Get friends to spread the word around that she did not return the feelings Draco had expressed for her

If Draco happened to make a move on her, slap him in the face for dramatic affect

Ginny wasn't particularly excited about slapping Draco, but Hermione said it had to be

done. Ginny promised herself that she would only hit him if he seriously hit on her, and didn't leave her alone. Everyone knew Ginny didn't take crap from guys.

Ginny left the Great hall, and made her way down to charms class. She used the route that Hermione had carefully laid out for her, taking her past rooms she was sure Slytherins would not be hanging out by. She was one hallway away from her classroom, when she spotted a shiny silver-blond head.

"Oh crap!" she thought, as she realized it was Draco. Ginny composed herself, took deep breaths, and went to the opposite side of Draco, and his myriad of followers. Just as she was about to pass him, he sidestepped over to her, and rested his side and elbow against the wall.

"Hey there, beautiful!" Draco said smoothly as he gazed into her eyes, and checked her out. Ginny almost gagged.

"What do you want, ferret!?" she snapped, and tried to get passed him.

"You." He said, and inched his face closer to hers.

"Dream on, Draco!" Ginny exclaimed. She pushed her hand into his face, and smashed against the stone wall. Ginny ran off, while Malfoy groaned in pain.

"Don't forget Weasley," shouted Draco after her. "You've just made the top of my to-do list!"

Ginny's face flushed as she entered the Charms classroom, and sat down in her seat. So she, Ginny Weasley, was at the top of Draco's to-do list.

"Merlin, help me!" she exclaimed, halfway expecting the wizard to fall from the sky. But instead, she got a whopping homework assignment from Professor Flitwick.

"Bloody Hell" she muttered as she read through the assignment. Flitwick had decided that the 6th years needed to be paired with the 7th years for a big research paper. Professor Flitwick said he would be announcing the pairs the next day. A buzz erupted from the class.

"Half my friends are in the 7th year," thought Ginny. "I should be fine." At dinner, most of the 6th years were stressing over getting a good partner for the assignment. Ginny, on the other hand was thinking of what subject she would like to do her paper on.

"Maybe I'll do it on a charm that Harry taught us in the DA!" she thought excitedly.

The next day came faster than any day had. Ginny really wanted her almost brother Harry, or her brother's friend Dean, and his friend Seamus. Ginny liked all of these boys. _But Ron would be a disaster_ Ginny was the second one into class. Colin Creevey was the first. Ginny waited about 5 minutes, and by then, most of the class was in their seats. Professor Flitwick was the last one in the classroom.

"The list of partners is ….." Ginny listened for her name. She almost passed out when she did.

"Ginny, and Ron," Professor Flitwick called over the voices of excited students. Ginny didn't look at anyone in the room. She looked straight ahead and tried to release her anger without breaking anything, or making a high pitched scream. This involved a crumpled piece of parchment, a broken quill, and a dent in her desk.

The minute class was over, Ginny went to the front of the classroom to speak with Professor Flitwick.

"Professor," Ginny started. "I cannot work with my brother Ron!"

"Yes, yes, I knew you would say that. Let us see… hmmmm… ah yes, I can switch you if you would like."

"That would be fantastic Professor! Anyone would be better than Ron." "Alright" he said. "Your new partner will be..." _Harry, Dean or Seamus!_ Ginny thought desperately to herself.

"Your new partner will be Draco, and your brother Ron will be paired with Colin Creevey." Ginny tried not to throw something. She knew she had just made her situation ten times worse. _Well that's just peachy_!. _Not to mention he couldn't keep his hands off of me a day ago! This… THIS is my punishment for being sexy!?!?! Life sucks_


	2. Hermione Blows

Ginny sat down at the Gryffindor table and pouted. Not only was she partnered with Draco Malfoy, and her whole grade depended on this project, but she had to try and act civil to him, and he was going to hit on her the entire time.

Draco sat at the Slytherin table and pouted. He was partnered with the twerp Colin Creevey, and he had to work with him on the most important project in Charms history. Just as Draco thought this, a third year came rushing towards him. The third year stopped right in front of Draco, with a letter in her hand.

"Yes, can I help you" Draco said intimidating the third year, and making her knees shake.

"Prof-Professor Flitwick asked me to give this to-to you" she said, stumbling on her words, and thrusting the letter into Draco's hands. After Draco had taken the letter, the third year scrambled away, not looking back at the big scary 7th year. Draco carefully unfolded the letter. He scanned the letter, carefully picking up key words. The letter said-

_Draco Malfoy_

_Because of certain circumstances, you will be switching partners. Colin, your old partner, will be working with Ron Weasley, and his sister, Ginny, will be your new partner. I hope this will be ok with you, because there is no other option. Ginny looked a little bit stunned when I told her that she would be joining you, but I am sure you two will get along fine. I suggest that you get together with Ginny as soon as possible to decide which topic you will be studying. _

_Professor Flitwick_

Draco was afraid that he might explode. A whole two months with Ginny Weasley would be the most wonderful moments of his life.

"Now, he thought. How to woo her." Draco sat down on his bed, when Blaise came into the room.

"So" he said, "How's the relationship thing going?" Draco let out an enthusiastic whoop, and thrust the letter at Blaise. Blaise quickly read the letter, and then laughed to himself.

"Man, you don't have any skill, but you have insane luck!" Draco attempted to look offended, but he was too happy. The result was Draco looking like he was happily pushing out a large turd. Blaise laughed even harder.

"Shut up!!!!" Draco yelled and then threw a pillow at Blaise. Blaise whomped him back, which resulted in a pretty-boy pillow fight.

"You never answered me" Blaise said after the pillow fight was over.

"Well, I take it you didn't hear about the hallway incident then." Draco responded. "No, but I assume you made a fool of yourself."

"Well, kind of, but I cornered her, and went in for the kiss, and she slammed my head against the wall, and ran off. But don't worry, before she went away, I told her she had made the top of my to-do list."

"Ouch!!" Blaise exclaimed after he had heard the news. "She slammed your head against the wall? She must really hate you!"

"Nobody can resist the Malfoy charm!"

"Uhh… I think she just did, actually." Draco frowned and tried to think of a comeback.

"May I suggest" started Blaise, "That you act civil and apologize, and try and be friends with her before you try and make out with her?" Draco snorted, and said under his breath

"Malfoys never apologize" Then, it was time for Blaise to laugh.

"And that," he responded, "Is why you have Pansy for a girlfriend! I, on the other hand, have a gaggle of hot girls watching me, and waiting for the right time to make out with me in the broom closet." Draco almost fell off of his chair. Just then, a girl's voice could be heard shouting up to the dormitories.

"Blaise…. I need your help getting something out of the broom closet!" "That" Blaise said, "Would be my cue!" Draco sighed and wished that that was Ginny calling to him.

Ginny woke up the next morning to have an eagle sitting at her window. She took the letter, and let the eagle fly away. Ginny examined the letter carefully, and finding nothing wrong with it, she opened it. Ginny unfolded the letter and began to read.

_Dear Ginny,_

_I am truly sorry about the way that I acted a couple of days ago. It was genuinely disgusting, and I apologize. I have been informed that we will be working together on a project for Charms class, and it was suggested that we meet some time soon to pick a topic to research on. If tomorrow at 7pm is ok, write me back. Again, I am really sorry about the way that I acted, and it will not happen again. _

_Sincerely, Draco Malfoy_

Ginny almost puked.

"How," she thought "could Draco Malfoy say something like that? It was actually semi nice!!" Against her better judgment, Ginny pulled a piece of parchment and a quill from her schoolbag. She quickly scrawled a response to Draco.

_Dear Draco,_

_7pm is fine. See you in the library._

_Ginny_

_p.s. Apology accepted_

Draco sat on his bed and wondered if Ginny would right back to him.

_I was a downright git. But I didn't deserve this kind of rejection_! He thought to himself. _This is the last time I am ever listening to Blaise for relationship advice!_ As he was thinking, his Eagle swooped down, and pecked at his window. Never in his life had he been so happy to see the bird. He quickly took the letter and read it word for word. His smirk stretched all the way across his face when he read her p.s. Just then, Blaise came through the door, lips swollen, and a giant hicky on his neck. Draco laughed when he saw him, and with a flick of his wrist, the evidence that Blaise had been making out in a broom closet vanished. It took a minute for Blaise to see that Draco was beyond happy.

"What's the smirk for?" he asked.

"Ginny forgave me for the hall incident, and we have a date tomorrow at seven!" Draco said in an excited voice.

"A date….?"

"Well… kind of, a study date more like, but still. She agreed to meet me to spend time with ME!!!" Blaise sighed heavily and shook his head.

"I doubt she will do anything but schoolwork, do don't get your hopes up."

"That's what you think." Draco said, not at all discouraged. "Just watch and learn."

Ginny was walking up to the Gryffindor common room, when Hermione stopped her.

"Hey!" she said, as Ginny turned around. "I hear you got paired with Malfoy."

"Yeah" Ginny answered. "So, how are you going to get out of it?" she questioned.

"Uhhhh….actually I'm not…really…" Ginny stammered, looking down at the floor.

"WHAT??!!!!!!" Hermione yelped. "What do you mean your not switching partners? Do you actually think you are going to complete the project without one of you two dead??? Didn't think so!!!" Hermione was furious. Ginny was a disgrace to all Gryffindors. In a quiet voice Ginny answered.

"I don't have a choice. I don't think Professor Flitwick will let me switch again, seeing as I already asked once. Besides, we already have a time set up to meet, and discuss our topic…" Hermione let out her breath.

"Ron is going to blow his top. You know that right?" Ginny nodded, said goodbye to Hermione, and then walked off to go to Potions. She was completely embarrassed that Hermione would make such a big scene in the middle of the corridor.

The next day, Ginny was not very happy. She had absolutely nothing to look forward to, especially meeting with Draco. After dinner, Ginny went to get her books, and then went to the library. When she got there, she saw Draco with a half-smirk-half-smile on his face, sitting at a table near the window. Ginny forced her legs to move towards her, and managed to pull her face muscles into a half smile. _Oh joy_ she thought.


	3. A trip to the Hospital Wing

Ginny forced a smile on her face and sat down across from Malfoy.

"So…." She said. "What topics are you interested in doing?" Draco thought for a moment and then said

"I was thinking about doing the Patronus Charm. What about you?"

"Oh!" she exclaimed. "I learned how to do that last year! Do you know how to do it too?"

"No, but I would like to learn it. Who taught you? Maybe I could learn from them…" Draco was cut short by Ginny's giggles.

"What!?" Draco asked. "I don't think Harry would be that keen on teaching you the Patronus Charm." She managed to get out between giggles.

"Oh, Maybe not." Draco looked at Ginny.

"Oh… I'm not a very good teacher. Im sure Professor Snape would be happy to teach you though." Draco was crushed, but tried to hide it. Of course he had hoped that Ginny herself would teach him. Ginny avoided Draco's glances from then on. She knew he wanted her to teach him the Patronus charm, but there was no way she was going to do that, not yet at least. She hardly even knew the guy. Even though, Ginny felt Kind of bad. Draco's voice finally penetrated the silence.

"I'll go get some books. Want to come with me?" "Sure" Ginny said and got up to follow Draco. Draco lead her straight passed the Charms books and into the back of the huge library. Of course, Draco had already gotten permission from Snape to get any books he wanted from the Restricted Section a couple of days ago, after the project was assigned.

"Professor Snape signed a note saying I could go back here if I needed to." Draco said to Ginny, who was in awe. It was obvious to Draco that Ginny had never been in the Restricted Section before.

"I thought we might be able to find out more about the Patronus charm back here." Draco said to Ginny who was still staring at the shelves of banned books.

"Oh my gosh……" she managed to mumble as she tore her eyes away from the books.

"We'll be able to look up anything back here!" Ginny looked up, when something caught her eye. She nimbly climbed up the ladder to get up to the book. Ginny reached the book with the tips of her fingers, and leaned a little bit further. Draco watched nervously as Ginny fumbled with the book. Just as she pulled it off the shelves, the ladder slipped away from her. Ginny screamed as she saw the ground grow nearer and nearer. Just as she was about to hit the floor, two strong arms caught her, and set her gently on the ground.

"Nice catch" she said as she looked at Draco's obviously amused face.

"Nice fall Weasley. You're lucky I was there."

"Yeah" Ginny said quietly. "Thanks." "No problem" Draco said, and glanced at the book Ginny was holding.

"What book did you get?"

"Oh!" Ginny exclaimed. "_The history of the Patronus Charm_. I think it will be very useful. Oh! I forgot the other book I was going to get!" Ginny put the book down and started climbing up the ladder again.

"I don't think so!" Draco said and pulled Ginny down from the ladder. "I'll get it." Ginny mumbled something about incapable, and just a little slip. Draco climbed up the ladder and then turned down to look at Ginny.

"Which one did you want?" he called down to her.

"Oh, the blue and silver one." Draco tossed the book down to her and climbed down the ladder.

"There, see!" He said. "I didn't almost kill myself…" Ginny gave him a look, and Draco quickly shut up.

Draco and Ginny grabbed many books from the shelves, and piled them up at their table. In a normal circumstance, people would have stared at Ginny and Draco sitting at a table together, but about half the students from the 6th and 7th years were sitting at the tables together working on their projects. Ginny was very excited to look through all the restricted information, so she grabbed a few other books about different topics for herself and her friends.

"What are you doing with _The Advanced Properties of Wizard Chess_ and _Extremely Dangerous Magical Plants from Australia_?" Draco asked.

"Oh!" said Ginny, shoving the books into her bag. "I need them for other classes." Ginny attempted not to blush.

"Right… a project on Wizard Chess?" Ginny blushed tomato red.

"Oh…well…no…It's for Ron." "Right…" Draco fought off a smirk. He liked seeing Ginny so flustered and embarrassed. Of course, he didn't mind her taking books, but he pretended to mind.

"Do you think it is OK to abuse the privilege that Professor Snape so kindly granted us?" Ginny grabbed the books out of her bag and said shamefully,

"No, I'll go put these back." Draco laughed as Ginny started to walk off.

"Ginny…" he said. "I was just kidding!" Ginny whirled back around. She grabbed her things off the table, stuffed them roughly in her bag, and then turned to walk away.

"That" she said, "was not funny!" Draco didn't try and stop her because their time together was up.

"I hope she's not too mad at me!" he thought as he put his books in his bag. "She'll never believe a word I say now." Draco gathered the rest of his belongings and headed out the door.

As Draco walked out of the Library, a redhead caught his eye. He looked over just in time to see Ginny handing a book to Neville. It was the book about plants that she had gotten from the restricted section. Neville practically screamed when he saw the book.

"How-how did you get this?!" Ginny just put her fingers to her lips and said,

"It's a secret!" Neville took off with the book, obviously to read it cover to cover. Ginny then walked to the Gryffindor common room. Once Draco was in the Slytherin common room, he sat down to think. He needed to get something for Ginny to make it up to her. Although Ginny was a book sort of person, Draco thought he needed something a little more personal. He decided to talk to Blaise about the matter.

"You WHAT??!!??!" Blaise yelled after Draco told him what had happened in the Library. "It was a little joke!" Draco defended himself.

"Girls don't like little jokes Draco! Especially girls who already hate you!"

"She doesn't hate me!" Draco said and flashed a signature smile. "She just doesn't know she's madly in love with me either."

Ginny repeatedly smacked herself in the head.

"How could I have been so mean?" Ginny sat down on a couch to think. "He's trying so hard to be nice, and there I go being rude, and mean!" It was then when Ginny decided to make an oath to herself. "I, Ginny Weasley, will be nice to Draco Malfoy from now on."

"Really?" said a voice from behind her. Ginny's face turned bright pink. She turned around to face Ron.

"Uh…yeah." She said quietly, bracing herself for the blow.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU'RE GOING TO BE NICE TO DRACO?!!!??" he exploded. Ginny was almost blown back by the rush of air that was coming from her brother's gaping mouth.

"HE'S OUR ARCH ENIMY! HAVE YOU NO RESPECT WOMAN??????" After he was done, Ginny took off to the girl's dormitory, and took the 10 deep breaths. In, and out Ginny." She told herself. Once she had calmed down, she realized that she needed to start on her homework. It was midnight when she was completely done. Ginny fell asleep the minute her head hit her pillow.

The next morning, it wasn't Ginny who was avoiding people, it was Draco. After he heard screams coming from the Gryffindor Common Room, he decided it would be best to stay away from any Weasleys. Draco especially avoided Ron, who he was quite sure would pound his face in if he saw him. During potions, Ron kept giving Draco icy glares, and forgetting about his potion.

"Weasley!" Snape snarled as Ron set his cauldron on fire for the third time.

"I know you love staring longingly at Draco, but please, try and finish your potion." After Professor Snape's remark, Draco knew he was in for it.

"All that beauty sleep for nothing." He thought as he imagined his face getting pummeled by Ron Weasley. Draco thought he had gotten away without any damage as he went to his final class, Charms. He was about halfway there, when he was shoved to the ground. Ron's fists met his stomach very hard.

"Stay-away-from-my-sister" Ron said in between punches. Before Ron could get any more swings in at Ron, Blaise pulled him off of his best friend. Draco moaned on the ground before Blaise helped him up, and took him to the hospital wing.

"Thanks man" he managed to say, although his stomach and body hurt worse than ever before.

"No problem, but I thought you were going to try and avoid him!" Draco nodded and then said, "I tried."

Ginny just about passed out when she heard what had happened in the hallways.

"HE WHAT?!?!" she screamed, as Hermione told her about the fight.

"HOW COULD HE BE SO MEAN? I HAVE TO WORK WITH HIM YOU KNOW!!" Hermione nodded vigorously, as to not get her head chopped off.

"I know, Ginny, it was just horrible!" With that, Ginny ran up to her dormitory, grabbed all her books off her desk, and then ran to the Hospital Wing. She found Draco lying with his eyes closed, and looking paler than normal.

"Draco…" she whispered, to see if he was awake. Draco opened his eyes a little bit to see Ginny sitting on a chair near him_. So she came to see me! Wait until I tell Blaise_!

"You're awake!" she exclaimed.

"Barely…" he said, attempting to sound more hurt than he was.

"Your brother almost killed me!"

"I'm so sorry Draco!" she said, looking at the tiled floor.

"It's a good thing Blaise was there…" Ginny looked up at Draco, took a deep breath and then said.

"I brought my books with me, so we could work on our project, if you wanted." Draco smiled,

"Always studying are you?"

"Kind of." Ginny responded, not offended at all. "To make it up to you, I am going to try and teach you the Patronus Charm." If Draco wasn't in a full body cast, he would have done a happy dance.

"Really?" he asked, excitedly.

"Yes" Ginny confirmed, as she saw how excited Draco was about learning the spell. _"I might regret this…But look at how happy he is now. Besides, you owe him, big time._


	4. The Patronus

Ginny felt good about herself as she walked back to the Gryffindor Girls Dormitories. _He isn't that bad Maybe, I misjudged him._ As Ginny was walking to her room, the happiest bloke in Hogwarts was laying in the Hospital Wing.

"SHE LOVES ME YEAH, YEAH, YEAH!!!" he sang at the top of his hurt lungs. Madam Pomfrey burst through the doors, and yelled for him to stop.

"You'll hurt yourself even more, so be quiet and I might let you out tomorrow." From then on, Draco was completely silent and still. He wanted so badly to see Blaise and Ginny. As he was thinking about Blaise and Ginny, Blaise came to visit him.

"I heard your singing!" Blaise laughed.

"I have the right to sing on such an occasion! She agreed to teach me the Patronus!"

"Really?" Blaise said, almost as excited as Draco was.

"Yeah! I think she felt bad that her brother beat me up, but hey, I would get beat up again if she kissed me!" Blaise laughed.

"Don't count on it!" said a voice behind them. Two heads turned to see a smiling Weasley.

"What the frick are you doing here Weasley?!?!" Draco shouted.

"I forgot my book." Ginny said, holding back laughter. Ginny bent down to get her book, and came up slowly, as if pondering something. Before Draco could say anything, Ginny's lips brushed lightly against Draco's pale cheek.

"There, now you won't have to get beat up again." Ginny turned her back to a very stunned Draco, and left him to go study. When the door was shut Draco found he could talk again.

"Holy…!" but he was cut off by a scream in the corridor.

"OH MY GOD!!! DID I JUST DO THAT??!!! I CANT BELIEVE I JUST DID THAT!!! AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!! HOW COULD I?? RON'S GOING TO KILL ME! I JUST KISSED DRACO MALFOY! OH MY GOD!!!!"

Once the screaming stopped, Blaise was on the floor with tears rolling down his cheeks, and Draco had laughed the hardest he had ever laughed before.

"Well!" Blaise gasped. "I would say that went well…!" Draco laughed, and Blaise doubled over.

"I can't believe she just did that!"

"Wait, screamed at the top of her lungs that she kissed you, or actually kissed you?" Blaise questioned.

"Both, but especially the kiss!" Draco managed to get out. _There is no way that Ginny Weasley just kissed me! NO WAY!! _ Blaise could read his thoughts perfectly.

"Yeah, I know, it's crazy, but I think you're _Malfoy Charm_ actually worked!"

"Could it be!?" Draco acted astonished. "Could the Malfoy charm actually work?!"

"Gasp!!!" said Blaise, as he headed out the door. "See you around Draco. I got to do my homework."

"OK" said Malfoy. "See you around." The rest of the night was extremely uneventful compared to the few minutes when Ginny was there.

Ginny sat in her room after Defense Against the Dark Arts, and decided to write to Draco. She was tired of studying DA and wanted some excitement. Besides, she had made a promise to Malfoy to teach him the Patronus Charm. Ginny pulled out a piece of parchment and a quill and began to write.

_Dear Draco_

_I am extremely bored, and am tired of studying. I was thinking about teaching you how to do the Patronus Charm tonight if you have nothing better to do. If you do not, I will see you in the room of requirements at 6pm. Write back soon!_

_Ginny_

Blaise was the only one in the Slytherin Boys Dormitories when an old fluffy owl came swooping in the room. Blaise took the letter, and shooed the bird away. He read the front of the letter. Draco Malfoy was scrawled in large writing on the yellow-white envelope. Blaise could tell it was a girl's writing, presumably Ginny's because it was very neat, and Ginny was probably the only girl that would write to Draco. A mischievous look passed Blaise's face, and he quickly opened the letter. _The wonderful thing about magic is that I can seal it back up once I'm done!_ He read the letter quickly. To his disappointment, there were no juicy love poems, or revealing of some secret engagements, only a time for Draco to meet her in some room. Blaise glanced at his watch. It was already 5:30_. If Draco wants to go to this, he'd better come fast!._ He shoved the letter in the pocket of his robes, and ran down up the staircase to the Common Room. In Slytherin, the Dormitories were below the Common Rooms. He looked for Draco, and spotted him. Draco was sitting in a comfortable green chair, doing nothing. Blaise handed him the letter and said,

"You'd better get going if you want to be there on time. Personally, I'm surprised she even wrote to you after the kiss."

"Yeah" Draco agreed, "Me too." Draco went down to the bathroom to comb his hair, and then ran out the door. Draco knew where the room of requirements was because he was on the Inquisitorial Squad. He spotted the door right away, and then glanced at his watch. 5:59, right on time. Draco pulled the handle and stepped inside the room.

Ginny was so engrossed in a book that she didn't see him come in. Draco squinted to see the title. But he couldn't read the small writing. He decided to catch her attention by sitting down on the floor with a large _FLUMPPP_. Ginny jumped, and looked at Draco.

"You scared me!" she said, putting away her book.

"That was the idea" said Draco, laughing. Ginny smiled and said,

"Well, do you want to learn the Patronus or not?" Draco nodded.

"OK, well first, you have to think of the happiest moment in your life." Malfoy dug deep into his brain, and then thought of it. The moment Ginny Weasley had brought her lips to his cheek.

"OK," he said, "I've got it." Ginny knew not to ask, because she could probably guess.

"Good, now move your wand like this, and say **Expecto Patronum." As she said it, silvery mist shot out of her wand, and created a bird, which swooped around the room, and then disappeared. Draco's mouth hung open.**

** "Wow!" he gasped. "Will mine be a bird too?"**

** "No" Ginny replied, "It depends on your character."**

**Draco tried for hours to produce a Patronus, and after 2 ½ hours, he did. A dragon shot out of his wand, and Draco almost dropped it out of shock. **

**"I did it!" he yelled to Ginny, who was snoozing over in a beanbag chair in the corner of the room. "That's good, Malfoy." She mumbled, and dozed back to sleep. **

**"Come on Weasley, you have to get out of here now, it is almost midnight!" Ginny stretched, and then curled up in a ball. **

**"I don't want to. You can leave, but I'm comfortable right here." **

**"Ginny…" Draco whined. "Fine, ill make you move!" Ginny moaned, but Draco levitated her all the way up to the portrait of the Fat Lady. **

**"Ginny, you have to move now." Draco put her down on the ground, and gently pushed her towards the door. **

**"Fine!" she said, and got up to go inside. "Good job on your Patronus Malfoy." Draco smiled. **

**"Thanks Weasley." He said, and walked on to the Dungeon. Ginny noticed there was a certain spring in his step as he walked. **

**When Ginny appeared in the Gryffindor Common Room, it was almost empty. Hermione Granger had her nose stuck in a book, and Harry was attempting to redeem an overcooked potion. **

**"Hey guys" said a very sleepy Ginny. **

**"Hello Ginny. Where were you at dinner tonight? Ginny's stomach growled. **

**"Oh my gosh! I completely forgot!" Hermione ran up to her room, and brought down some pumpkin pasties. **

**"Thanks Hermione! I was really hungry." Ginny munched on pasties while Hermione questioned her. **

**"So…where exactly were you?" Ginny stopped chewing. **

**"Uhh…I was working on my project with Malfoy." Ginny decided to not lie. **

**"And what about the rumor about you kissing him?" Ginny blushed and looked away. **

**"No way Ginny! Tell me you didn't. Oh my god! You did. Wait until I tell Ron!" Ginny gasped. **

**"You wouldn't! Oh please Hermione! Please don't!" **

**"You're fraternizing with the ENIMY!! What did you think I would do?!? Oh Ron…!" she called up. "Your sister would like to tell you something!..." Ginny ducked behind a couch. **

**"Ginny…!" Ron growled…**


	5. Without a Backwards Glance

**A/N: Yes, yes, I know I took forever to update, but I have been sooo freaking busy, it's been a nightmare. Sorry about that, but its true! Read, enjoy, and above all, REVIEW!! (It makes my day so happy when I get good feedback, and someone who is obsessed about Draco and Ginny as I am!)**

"Yes Ron…" Ginny said meekly from behind the overstuffed couch.

"TELL ME YOU HAVENT KISSED MALFOY!!!" Ron yelled at his sister.

"Uhh…I haven't kissed Dra-Malfoy?" Ginny tried.

"Say it and mean it!" Ron yelled again, even madder.

"Sorry Brother, no can do!" and with that, Ginny took off and ran into her dormitory.

"Not so fast Ginevra Weasley!!!!" Ron hollered as he sprinted up after her. No sooner had he reached the fourth stair, he had been hurled down to the bottom again.

"Curse you Ginny!!" Ron yelled at her from below.

"Ron!" exclaimed Hermione, who watched the whole scene from a nearby couch.

"Be reasonable!" Ron looked quite offended.

"Come on Ron, she's your bloody sister!"

"Exactly why I don't want her snogging the biggest bloody git in Hogwarts!!!" Ron was breathless by the time he was done yelling.

Hermione sighed, and replied "Ron, there's nothing you, or I can do!"

Ron looked very down. "I mean, how come Malfoy gets all the bloody girls?!"

Hermione shook her head. "Ron, you couldn't be a bit like Malfoy if you tried!" Hermione challenged.

"Oh yeah? Well, I've got skittles in my mouth, wanna taste the rainbow?"

Hermione almost gagged. "Ron" she stated. "That was the lamest pick up line ever, and no, we are not going to snogg!"

Ron looked very depressed, and walked out of the room, his ego deflated, and self esteem gone.

After about an hour, Ginny thought it would be safe to venture into the common room. _No one should be in there…_Ginny peeked her head out of the doorway. All clear, Ginny ran for it.

When Ginny arrived at the Great Hall, most of the students were already eating. Ron sat pouting at the end of the Gryffindor table. Ginny attempted to eat without being noticed, but to no avail.

"Ginny!!" shouted Colin from across the table. "I haven't seen you all day!"

Ginny moaned and put her head in her hands. Ron turned his head to give Ginny an icy glare, and a certain blond from the Slytherin table smirked from across the room. Ginny gave him a dirty look, and then continued eating dinner.

Ginny got out of the Great Hall as fast as fast as she could. She rounded a corner, and then ran towards the Gryffindor Common Room. She was almost there, when a strong hand pulled her back.

"Let me go!" she gasped as she turned to face her captor. The words had hardly left her mouth when Draco's lips met hers with such force that she was knocked back, so her back was against the stone wall.

"Miss me?" Draco whispered, gazing into her chocolate brown eyes.

"No!" stated Ginny rudely, as she tried to get away.

"I'd be hurt if I believed you." Malfoy said, and again met her lips. This time, instead of pulling away, Ginny kissed back, which surprised Draco.

Ginny and Draco snogged for about five minutes before Ginny pulled away. "I have to go." She said, and turned to leave Malfoy.

Draco kissed a happy Ginny on the cheek. "Meet me." He whispered in her ear.

Draco's breath gave Ginny the shivers. "When?" she said, breathlessly.

"9 o'clock, by the lake." Draco whispered back. Ginny nodded, and then ran down the hall. She had heard people coming, and knew it would be a disaster id someone saw her with Draco.

Draco watched her go. The wings that had lifted him up off the ground when he and Ginny were kissing disappeared, and Draco's heart fell to the floor. Hard.

A large hand patted Malfoy's back. "You look down mate. What happened?" Blaise enquired, genuinely concerned about his best mate.

"I just snogged Ginny, and we are meeting tonight at nine." Draco said.

"Again, why so gloomy??" Blaise questioned, still completely clueless.

"It'll never work!" Draco turned to face Blaise. "If you haven't noticed, we are completely different! You know it, I know it, and Ginny probably knows it too!" He started walking towards the Slytherin common room.

Blaise followed him. "Mate, you're meeting her tonight. If you think you guys shouldn't see each other, just tell her tonight!"

Draco pondered the thought, but on thing troubled him the most. "What if she cries Blaise? I don't think I can handle a sobbing Weasley!"

"She'll get over it!" Blaise said. "They always do!"

"I don't want it to be over though!" Draco exclaimed. "I don't want to break he heart, and I don't want to make her cry!"

"Then don't break up with her!!!" Blaise said, exasperated. "Which do you think will hurt her more Draco? Breaking up with her now, or breaking up with her later when she is all attached?"

"I know, I know, but all I got out of this whole relationship was a five minute snogg!" Draco sighed and gave the password for the Slytherin Common Room.

Blaise and Draco went to their dorm. Blaise studied, and Draco got ready for his date. _It's for the best. It's for the best. It's for the best._ Draco told himself over and over.

Ginny changed clothed, and then walked towards the huge doors. Although she was a sixth year, it was still not a good idea to be running around outside after dark. Ginny snuck outside, and started her walk to the lake.

When Ginny arrived, Draco was lying in the soft grass. She quietly laid down beside him. Draco looked over, and saw his redhead lying beside him. His heart thrust inside his muscular chest. Draco rolled over, and kissed her on the cheek.

"Hey" he said, whispering in her ear.

_Did he just kiss me on the cheek? There must be something wrong. Oh my god…_

"Ginny, we really need to talk…" he started. _Did I just say that?!? That is soo lame…!"_

"Ok Draco." Ginny said in a calm voice.

"Ginny, I don't think we should go out, at least, not right now. I know we've been going out for like an hour, but I thought about it…"

"WHAT??!!!??!" Ginny said loudly as she jumped up. Ginny was really hurt, but Draco didn't deserve to see that, or know that.

"Ginny I…" Draco tried, but he was cut off.

"You thought we were going out?" Ginny laughed.

"Uh, yeah, that's what people usually do after they snogg."

"Draco, I knew it would never work out, didn't you?" Ginny laughed again, making Draco feel even more stupid.

"Ginny, that's why I came here, remember?" Draco said loudly, still confused.

"You are more clueless than I though. That kiss didn't mean a thing to me." Ginny told him, and left a very stunned Draco.

"How did she do that?" he asked himself. "How did she know? How did she turn the whole situation around? How come now I'm the clueless one? How come it's my fault now?"

Ginny ran as fast as she could until she reached the girls bathroom. She was crushed. Sure, she had covered it up well, put all the blame on Malfoy, but inside, she still felt all the pain. Sobs wracked her body as she shook. She should have known. She should have never trusted him.

Draco Malfoy was walking through the corridors when he heard sobs coming from the bathroom. His mind resisted, but his legs and body walked towards the door. The sobs grew louder.

Draco's pale hand pushed the door open, and he looked inside. The sobbing continued, although two huge brown eyes, glassy and wet with tears looked up at him, pitifully. Draco's heart cracked in two as his body took control. Draco turned his back on the bathroom and walked away without a backwards glance.


	6. A burden on Harry's chest

**A/N: Yeah, so if anyone noticed, I was listening to the Frey while I was writing this, so if you see some familiar lines, that's where it came from. **

Draco lay in bed. If he was physically capable of shedding tears, he still probably wouldn't have had one running down his pale cheek. Draco hadn't cried since he broke down in the bathroom with Myrtle. After being involved with the most evil wizards of all time, Draco had learned to keep his emotions to himself. He had not dried when his father was dragged off to Azkaban, or when his mother attempted to kill herself. _Not now, not ever_ he told himself.

Blaise entered the dark room, and squinted. He could see an empty bottle of Fire Whiskey at the foot of his roommate's bed. Blaise sat down on the end of Draco's bed. "How did it go?" he enquired.

"I did it… It's for the best, right?" Draco slurred. Blaise muttered a sobering charm, and instantly, the slurring stopped. The more Draco thought about what he had said to Ginny, the more wrong it felt.

"What's done is done, Draco. You can't take back what you said. Sometimes the hardest thing and the right thing are the same." Blaise said with a small grin.

"How poetic." Draco said sarcastically. _Mental note to self- Find out where Blaise got that line. Sure as hell he didn't make it up._ "I want her so bad. I need her."

"For god's sake Draco! Make up your mind!!! Find her, and tell her you made a mistake. Whatever helps you sleep at night."

Draco considered, and consented by bolting out of the room. He called for her in his head. "Ginny, wait up! I made a mistake! I'll make things better, I promise!"

Hermione put an arm around Ginny and hoisted her up. "Oh Ginny!" she muttered. "How do you always get yourself into these messes?"

Ginny felt her body being lifted up, but she made no effort to carry herself. Soon, she was left, safe in her bed. As soon as she heard the door close, she stirred in her bed and listened to the voices outside her door.

"I found her in the girl's bathroom. She was practically unconscious and sitting in a huge puddle of tears. I think she threw up a couple of times to." Said a voice that sounded like Hermione.

"Thank you so much Herms. I wonder what happened. It must have been bad if she got nauseous and cried for hours."

"I'm just glad I found her when I did! Who knows how long she would have sat there."

The conversation continued, but Ginny did not pay attention t it. She listened again, as the footsteps grew farther away, and the voices faded away. Once they were gone, Ginny fell into a light sleep.

Ginny's head then played the memories from the past 10 minutes like a tape that never stopped. She saw Malfoy, and her tears. She saw the floor coming nearer and nearer to her face as she fell once more into unconsciousness. After 10 minutes of this sequence, Ginny couldn't take it anymore.

Ginny woke up with tears running down her face, but she didn't remember crying them. She wiped them away onto her sleeve. Ginny slipped her feet into her worn slippers and headed down the stairs to the common room.

Ginny's eyes rested on a boy in the common room. He had messy black hair, and bright green eyes. Harry had his head in his hands and looked very pale. _He's probably had a night like mine. _Ginny walked quietly down the stairs, and sat down next to her friend.

"Harry," she said. "Why are you up?"

"Oh, hey Ginny. I've been having bad dreams lately, and I couldn't sleep. Of course, Neville's snoring couldn't have helped."

Ginny giggles. "Bad dreams? Me too Harry. They've been horrible Harry, absolutely dreadful." Ginny said. _Well, it is true! I have been having bad dreams…_

"What were they about Ginny?" Harry asked hoping to get an incite on why Ginny had been acting weird lately.

"It was Tom, Harry. He was back in my head, in my dreams. I dreamt that he wanted me to do things for him again, but I don't think it was real." Ginny closed her eyes and forced a tear to roll down her cheek. _Ok, I lied, big whoop. I hope he doesn't ask more questions. _

"I'm so sorry. He said to her. Ginny felt strong arms wrap around her and pull her into a hug. "I'm so sorry." He whispered again into her ear.

Ginny nuzzled her head into Harry's chest. For once, she felt safe, and loved. Her eyes closed, and she could feel his heart beating in his chest. Harry soothed her.

After a few moments, Ginny could feel Harry's eves on her, so she opened her eyes, and turned her face to look at him. "What are you doing?" she mumbled in a sleepy voice.

"Counting your freckles." He replied, and scrunched his eyes so he could count the tiniest freckles on her cheeks.

From then on, Ginny knew that Harry was the only one who cared. That alone meant so much to Ginny. She could feel someone wrap their arms around her and cradle her into comfort. She felt a little bad using him to take the pain away, but she knew she couldn't do it alone. _I need him_.

Ginny focused her attention on Harry. "Wanna take a walk?" she asked.

"Yeah, I think that would be nice. He responded. Harry helped Ginny out of the portrait hole, and didn't let go of her hand. Ginny didn't mind.

Draco turned a corner, and stopped to catch his breath. He had been running for about 15 minutes, because the Slytherin Common Room and the Gryffindor Common Room were on opposite sides of the school. A glimpse of red hair caught his eyes.

Draco was about to call her name, when he realized that she wasn't alone. He saw a small hand clasped in a larger one. He was too late. He had left, and she hadn't waited. "Potty" he snarled.


	7. Muggle Model

**A/N: hey! Im so sorry it took me so long to write this, and that its really short, but I wanted to let y'all know im still writing, and there is more coming! Thanks for sticking with me ******

Ginny saw something flash behind her, and looked casually behind her. Draco stood there, in his _I'm way too good for you!_ Stance. Ginny glared back. Draco gave her the finger, and stalked off.

Draco felt anger burning inside his chest. He had just witnessed the girl who he had just broken up with holding hands with the person he hated most; Harry Potter. He walked slowly up to the Slytherin Common Room humming an Irish drinking tune. Obviously Blaise's sobering charm hadn't gotten rid of all the side affects.

When Draco got into his dorm Crabe and Goyle were asleep and Blaise was looking at a muggle swimsuit magazine. With a casual flick of his wand, Draco set the magazine on fire.

"Oi! What did you do that for?!?! You have to admit those are pretty good looking muggles, and they don't have all those beauty charms that witches have! Here, I have another one if you want a look at it." He tossed Draco who looked at it for a second, and then tossed it into his eagle's cage, which was in desperate need of some more newspaper.

"They were holding hands." He told Blaise as he sat down on his bed.

"Well of course they were holding hands!" exclaimed Blaise. "What did you think they would be doing? Touching fingers? It's a magazine for Merlin's sake!"

"She was holding hands with potty." Said Draco, exasperated.

"Harry Potter?" asked Blaise. "In a muggle magazine? I didn't know he was a model! They must have had a hell of a time airbrushing that six-pack!"

"No you bloody idiot!!!" roared Draco. "Ginny and Potty were holding hands!"

"Oh! Does she know he's a model, and he's posing with half naked muggles?"

"Blaise, if you were any slower you'd be going backwards." And with that he rolled over, pulled the curtains on his four-poster and went to sleep.

Draco pulled the girls frail body after him and opened the nearest door, which happened to be a broom closet. The girl giggled slightly and looked adoringly up at his face. Their lips met with passion and Draco kissed Ginny like he never had before. Ginny wrapped he arms around his neck and locked her hands together as if saying _I'll never let you go, so don't even try. _Draco didn't mind as he wrapped his arms around her reassuringly. Nothing could break them apart now. They would always be together now. Forever.

_WHUMMPPP_! Draco's hand slammed down on his alarm clock, crushing it pieces. _Nothing could break them apart…except my alarm clock. _ Draco reminisced on his lovely dream before getting ready for another day of seeing Ginny. Seeing her laugh at other people's jokes. Seeing her holding hands with someone other then himself. Watching her live without him, and not seem troubled by it. She didn't seem to need him now as she did before, and the satisfaction that Draco thought he would get by this didn't wash over him. _She doesn't need me… but I still need her. Somehow. _

Draco's left arm itched, and he pulled his sleeve up to reveal a mark that had made him suffer. The mark that was tearing his family apart. The mark that made people kill. The mark that represented the task he had before him, the punishment if he didn't succeed, and the reason he couldn't be with Ginny now. He couldn't do anything except focus on how to kill Dumbledore, and he had to act soon. _Maybe in my spare time I can see Ginny_ he thought as he got dressed. _Like she'd even look at you if she knew what you were up too…_said a voice in his head, contradicting his thoughts. Draco wondered what he would do if Ginny wanted him back. Would he risk failing his task so he could date Ginny? Could he succeed doing wrong and still date a girl who was right in every way? _ It doesn't even matter, because she will never take you back. Not after what you did to her. Never._


	8. Unforgivable

He felt power, failure, and fatigue. He was full of feelings he wasn't used to. Except one… loneliness.

Draco's first plan had failed. The cursed necklace had been touched by the wrong person. But he had another plan already in action. He needed a place to think.

Ginny was in the Gryffindor common room when Harry came in. luckily he was looking backwards when he walked in, and Ginny had time to duck behind the nearest armchair. When he had passed, she ran to the portrait hole and hoisted herself through. _Why did I hide?? _She asked herself while walking at a fast pace. _What if he had seen me, and asked why I was hiding? Why am I leading him on like this? Why am I going behind his back? Will he ever understand how I'm torn between him and Draco? BUT I DON'T LIKE DRACO!!!! So im not leading him on! Because I love Harry Potter, not Draco Malfoy!! Silly me._ Ginny had many conversations with herself these past few days. Now, she needed a place to sort her thoughts. _I have my journal. Now all I need is an empty classroom. I need somewhere where I can think._

Suddenly a door appeared on the blank wall to her left. The room of requirement had opened without her knowing, and she didn't even realize that she was near it. Ginny knew the room had given her a room to think, and she quickly pulled open the door and stepped inside.

"Kind of you to drop by Weasley" said a smooth voice. Ginny's eyes whirled around, searching for the voice and quickly found the source. A pale boy with a pointed face sat in the far corner, apparently doing nothing.

The room they found themselves in was a chocolate brown and had many lights hanging from the ceiling, but the room was dim. It had a woven and soft rug on the floor, but the rest of the room was bare. Ginny assumed that this would provide less distraction for the thinker in the room.

"What the hell are you doing here, Malfoy?" Ginny snapped, putting an emphasis on the word _Malfoy._

"Same as you, I expect. Sorting my thoughts. Or am I not allowed to do that? Not like a blood traitor like you would ever stop me though." Draco responded, keeping his voice steady. Ginny snorted.

"Attractive Weasley. No need to make yourself seem more like a pig that you already are." Responded Draco.

Ginny was pulling out her wand when she noticed something floating above Draco's head. It looked like a thought bubble, and it had words written inside it. It was translucent, and it captured the light so that it shimmered. Ginny read what it said.

"_Damn. Did I just call her a pig? I feel a bat boogey coming on…"_ Ginny noticed there was more than just one though. 10 or 20 different thought bubbles floated almost invisibly above Draco's head. And then Ginny remembered what she had asked for from the room of requirement. A place to _sort_ her thoughts… and then it hit Ginny. She could see thoughts in this room, although she should only be seeing her own thoughts. She glanced up and saw the same translucent bubbles floating above her own hear too. Ginny quickly looked down before Draco could notice what she was looking at. _ I wonder If he sees them too, or if he's just playing dumb._

Ginny read more of the bubbles. _"I can't believe she came in here! And without knocking too!" _Ginny read on. _"I wonder if she would slap me if I kissed her again" "I have to remember to finish my transfiguration homework" "I have to get that poison in that drink for Dumbledore or the Dark Lord will murder me."_ Ginny froze. She read it over again and it started to fade. _He must be thinking about it less now _Ginny thought as Draco stared at her more intensely now.

Draco stood up abruptly and startled Ginny. He walked towards her and stopped when he was a foot away from her. Ginny's body was pressed up against the wall, backing away from him. "Yes. I can see them to Weasley. Now tell me what you saw. Now." Draco said in a low and harsh voice.

"I- I didn't see anything!" stammered Ginny as Draco pulled his wand out and pointed it at her.

"Don't lie to me Weasley! What did you read?! Don't make me hurt you." Draco responded in the same harsh voice.

"I read- I read something about D-Dumbledore…" Stuttered Ginny, her eyes filling with tears.

"TELL ME WHAT YOU SAW!!" Draco yelled, and pointed his wand again at Ginny. "_Crucio!_" said Draco, and Ginny fell to the floor with a crash. Her arms cradled her head as her legs scrunched up. She rolled on the floor while screaming in agony. Draco stopped, and dropped his wand. His face was paler than ever before. He kicked his wand across the floor, and sat down slowly next to Ginny, who was moaning. Draco lifted her head gingerly off the floor and into his lap. Everything his mind told him to do, his body resisted. He wanted to kiss her right now, and tell her how much he was sorry, but his body resisted. His body knew physical pain. The pain that came from the Dark Lord if you resisted him.

"I'm sorry…Ginny." He whispered, so only himself could hear. But Ginny did hear, and she raised her head to look at him, her big brown eyes swimming with tears. Carefully, she reached to his left arm and pulled back his sleeve. She stroked the mark on his wrist, and then responded quietly "What has he done to you?"

Draco sighed. He felt the pain that he had caused Ginny coursing through him. "Now is not the time… I'll tell you later, when you are well." He lifted Ginny so she was standing, her head rested on her shoulder. They walked together in silence down to the hospital wing where Draco fetched Madam Pomfrey. "She fainted" He told her, as he helped Ginny onto her bed in the wing. He gave Ginny's hand a squeeze and then left the Hospital Wing. Madam Pomfrey hovered over Ginny giving her medicine and chocolate until Ginny fell asleep.


	9. A Promise

Ginny had many visitors during her short stay in the hospital wing. Colin came, as well as Harry, Ron, and Hermione. Ginny secretly hoped all day that Draco would show up, but he never did. During her long hours of lying in her bed, she wondered why she wanted to see him. _He did the bloody Cruciatus curse on me! And apparently he's being forced to work for Voldemort! Why the hell do I want him near me??_ In the end, Ginny decided that she actually didn't want Draco to come and see her, but if he did, she would be polite to him.

Draco tried very hard to come see Ginny while she was in the hospital wing, but every time he passed it, either someone was visiting her, or she was sleeping. He couldn't tell if she was actually sleeping, or faking it so she wouldn't have to see him, but she looked so peaceful Draco decided that she was actually sleeping. He felt that he needed to explain about last night, before she got the wrong idea. Although the "wrong idea" was probably the "right idea" he felt like he needed to explain himself. Or did he? Draco felt like he could trust Ginny with his secret, although he hadn't told anyone else. He couldn't figure out why he felt this way, or if he had ever felt this way before. _I don't think she will understand, so is it even worth telling her? What if she turns me in to Dumbledore, and he sends me to Azkaban, or kills me?? _Although Draco didn't think Dumbledore was the killing type, he couldn't help but be concerned about his safety when he a great wizard knew he was trying to murder him. _And what about Ginny's safety? What if the Dark Lord finds out I trusted her? Will he kill her too?_ After thinking about it a lot, Draco decided that the best thing to do would be to tell Ginny. But first, he wanted to talk to Blaise, which meant telling him everything too.

After telling Blaise about his situation, Blaise had his doubts about Draco's plan. "You are seriously going to tell her that you are plotting to murder the Headmaster after you preformed the Cruciatus curse on her?! They call it an Unforgivable curse for a reason mate."

"I am perfectly capable of judging whether she can be trusted or not, and I have a good feeling about this. Besides, I'm a trustable guy." Draco sneered.

Blaise laughed. "Draco, you and trustworthy don't belong in the same sentence. There is also a reason you are in Slytherin not Hufflepuff."

But at this, Draco got defensive. 'You don't think I know what's going to happen? You don't think I know what will happen if I don't do what the Dark Lord wants?! I know, ok, so you might as well just stay out of it because it's none of your bloody business! I'm not going to put Ginny in any danger by telling her what's up! She's not going to judge me because I'm being forced to do something bad!" Draco snarled.

"Oi" Blaise yelled back. "Don't blame me for what's happening in your family! It's not my fault your father was carted off to Azkaban! And it sounds to me like you're trying to convince yourself nothing will happen to Ginny, not me!"

"Leave my father out of this!" Draco yelled, taking an aggressive step closer to Blaise.

Blaise looked offended. "Hey, ok Mate. I'm sorry. Just forget what I said ok?"

"Yeah, whatever." Said Draco as he left the Common Room and went to his next class.

Ginny was let out of the Hospital Wing that afternoon, and most of her teachers excused her from her homework. They all said "OWL's is a very stressful time!" but they didn't know the real reason she was in the Hospital Wing. She wondered when Draco would come and explain to her what was going on. The more time passed, the more angry she became with Draco, and the more frightened she became of him. _I always knew he was mean-spirited, but I never knew he would actually try to kill someone! What if he tries to kill me because I know too much? _Although her ideas didn't even seem likely to her, Ginny couldn't help but think about all the possibilities.

Draco ran up another staircase to get to the 5th floor of the castle. After sprinting down a corridor he reached an empty wall. _I need a room that Ginny Weasley will accidentally go into that I can wait in. _Suddenly a large wooden door appeared in front of him. He quickly made sure the corridor was empty before pulling the door open and stepping inside. This time the room was cozy and warm. It was small, and had two armchairs by a large fireplace. Draco saw two butter beers on the table in between the armchairs. Draco sat down in one and waited.

Ginny had just finished her last class, Divination, and was planning to go do her homework in the library which meant she had a long way to walk. She meandered down hallways, but decided to take a detour to go to the bathroom. She soon came to the bathrooms and walked inside. When Ginny came into the bathroom, it wasn't a bathroom at all. Draco Malfoy sat in an armchair by a fire, and it looked like he was waiting for her. "How…?" Ginny spluttered as she closed the door behind her so nobody could see them as they passed the room.

"The Room of Requirement. It has served us well these past few days." Responded Draco as he motioned her to sit down in the other armchair.

Ginny sat down. "Wont other girls come into the room looking for the bathroom?" asked Ginny.

"No, the room changed into the Room of Requirement the moment you stepped in the door." Responded Draco, having already thought out his answers to all the questions she could possibly ask.

"Why did you make me come here?" Ginny cut to the chase. "I want to know what is going on, and you better tell me the truth."

Draco was expecting her reaction, so he didn't refuse. "All of my family are Death Eaters. Last year my father failed to get the prophecy from the Department of Mysteries, and the Dark Lord was very angry. Angry at my family, and he holds grudges. But he trusts me. He has a plan for me, which I must carry out. My mom says than he knows I cannot do it and is using me as a punishment for my father, but I know he is using me because he can trust me. My family is his faithful servants."

Ginny wasn't shocked. "I don't believe you Draco. I don't believe that you want to do this. I know you know that you can't do this. It's so wrong Draco! To kill Dumbledore would be awful! You can't do it Draco! You aren't like the rest of them! I know there is good in you."

Draco turned his head away from her. "I don't believe it. I have to do this. He will kill me family if I don't!"

"Then get another Death Eater to do it at least! It doesn't have to be you Draco!"

"He says it does. I have to do it Ginny. There's no other way. I wish it could be any other way, but it can't." _Why does she have to understand? Why can't she yell at me like Blaise?_

"When? How? Tell me when you are going to do it Draco?" Ginny said. She didn't know why she understood this. _I can help him. He knows its wrong, and I can help him understand. I can get him help! Dumbledore can help him._

Draco could read her face. "You can't tell anyone Ginny. Even Dumbledore. You said you wouldn't, and that was the condition when I said I would tell you."

"Then how are you going to get help?" Ginny asked,

"I'm not, Ginny. I'm going to do it myself, and if you can't deal with that, you should just leave now, although I really want you to say." Draco turned his hear to look again at Ginny.

Ginny sighed. "Just don't hurt me this time." Ginny wanted to stay with him. _I can change him. I can teach him how to choose what's right._

"I won't." said Draco earnestly. "I promise."


	10. Taking it Slow

**A/N: heeeyy. Sorry it took me soo long to update! I just wanted to let everyone know I deleted my first chapter because it was stupid and didn't match the rest of the story. So I don't know if people got confused or not, just make sure you guys have read chapter 9 and 10. (Those are my recent chapters!)**

**Love, Truly!**

**p.s. sorry this chapter isn't very long… :(**

Draco closed his eyes and focused. When he opened his eyes again, the cozy room he was in had changed from a small sitting room to a richly furnished room with a table for two.

Ginny laughed. "This is what you pictured when you asked for a room to eat in???" Without waiting for an answer sat down at the table. "So how are we going to eat? You know we can't make something out of nothing."

Now it was Draco's turn to laugh. "I see you have been studying hard…" he smiled. "I arranged for a house elf to bring us food." Said Draco.

"You planned ahead for this?!?! How did you know I would stay? How did you know I wouldn't just leave and never talk to you again?" asked Ginny, now very confused.

"I just assumed you would. I know you Ginny. Of course, not as much as I would like to…" he winked at Ginny. "But really Ginny. You're an easy person to read. It's almost like I can see what you will do next."

_Well it looks like the old Draco is back…_"Really." Said Ginny. She was skeptical. _I'm not easy to read! What is he talking about!!!??"_ "So what am about to do now? This should be an easy one, if you do know what you're talking about."

Draco laughed. He had seen Ginny glancing down at her empty plate every two seconds, so he had a pretty good idea what she was thinking. "Soon, Ginny. Be patient! I'm sure the house elves are preparing a really good meal."

Surprised that he knew, Ginny dropped her response that was going to be something along the lines of "ha-ha I told you so!" Just then, the door opened, and Ginny whirled her head around to see a cute (as far as house elves go) young house elf. She had on a brightly floral tea towel on and a small pink bow on top of her head. Ginny recognized her as Winkey. Winkey served them French onion soup with bread. She also gave them sparkling apple juice to drink and rice pudding for desert. Ginny and Draco thanked her very much, and Winkey bowed so deeply on her way out the door Ginny could have sworn she would see the wall behind her.

When their dinner was over, Draco looked at his pocket watch. "Oh gosh Ginny, it's already 8:30. I've got homework to do, and you probably do to."

Ginny sighed. "Yeah, I guess I should probably be getting back to the common room. Too bad, I was really having fun!"

Draco smiled. "I know, me too. But we'll find some time to spend together soon. Should I walk you back to the Gryffindor Common Room?"

"Yes, I would like that." Ginny responded. She was really hoping that he would ask her that.

As they walked, Ginny felt as though nothing bad had ever happened between them. It was as though they had just met, and they were on their first date together. They talked about school, Quidditch, and for once Ginny was grateful that it was such a long walk to her common room. During that walk, Ginny felt like their families were never enemies, but long time friends. She imagined what life would be like if she didn't have to hide being friends with Draco from the rest of the world. She wondered how it would feel if Ron, instead of yelling at her, congratulated her on her fine choice of friends. And Harry, instead of scorning her and avoiding her, was happy for her, and wasn't jealous. Draco and Ginny reached the door sooner that either of them had hoped.

"Well, I guess I have to go now…" said Ginny. Turning to go into the portrait hole. For a moment her face turned around to face Draco's, and they were inches apart.

Draco's first instinct was to flat out snogg her, but he quickly realized that was a bad idea. _Take it slow; you don't want to surprise her, even if it's a good surprise. _ Draco took Ginny's hand and helped her through the hole. He gave her hand a squeeze flashed her a winning smile, and walked away.

At first, Ginny was a little disappointed that he didn't kiss her. In her mind it was a perfect opportunity. But the more she thought about it, the more her mind changed. _He wanted to, but he didn't. I don't think he wanted to scare me, or surprise me. Maybe he's just keeping his promise about not hurting me. I guess he wants to take this slow, so I value that. It might mean that I'm going to have to make the first move though…"_


End file.
